Revolt looms as organisation intensifies row over controversial vegetable garden

A revolt, by way of planting vegetable gardens along sidewalks nationwide, was on the cards to show support for and to stand in solidarity with the self-proclaimed ‘cabbage bandit’ from Theresapark, north of Pretoria.

“With immediate effect, we the people of South Africa, will protest against our government nationwide by planting our own vegetable gardens on our pavements and, where we cannot, we will leave baskets of vegetables on our pavement for the poor,” said humanitarian organisation We Are South Africans founder Gilbert Martin.

This as ‘cabbage bandit’ Joe Nkuna awaited his day in court, which was set for November.

In court, Nkuna was expected to face off with the Tshwane metro police department (TMPD) and challenge the R1 500 fine he was issued with earlier this week over his controversial curbside vegetable garden along with a charge of obstructing a sidewalk which was reserved for pedestrians.

ALSO READ: Row over curbside vegetable garden continues

“We rally behind this man because he is who we are – a nation of givers and kind people that care for each other and will no longer be divided,” Martin said.

He further urged members of his organisation to adhere to Covid-19 protocols when they start their gardens and to also adhere to some rules.

“When creating the gardens, members should leave space for pedestrians to walk and avoid damaging pipes and infrastructure,” Martin said, adding that if they damaged property they would have to pay.

Martin also said they should also check their by-laws to see what their boundary lines were and to keep it 30cm away so that it was not government’s “unmaintained and unserviced” land.

“Please take photos, wear masks and know this is not just a protest against this government, but a move to help the poorest of the poor,” he said.

The ongoing controversy surrounding the vegetable garden ensued earlier this week when his social media post went viral about how two TMPD officers allegedly threatened him with arrest if he did not remove the garden after they received a complaint about it.

On Wednesday, TMPD spokesperson Senior Superintendent Isaac Mahamba said they did not discriminate with their by-law enforcement.

“We seek to enforce all laws equally in the city and ensure that when complaints are received, we respond to them,” he said.

“They identified that Mr Joe Nkuna was utilising a public road reserve to grow an array of crops. Mr Nkuna was issued with a verbal warning and requested to comply with the regulations pertaining to the use of road reserve and he did not.”

He further explained that the legislation which was used to issue the fine and charge him was related to the road traffic act and City’s amenities by-law.

“Mr Nkuna does not own this land and cannot merely decide to use it for agricultural purposes. It is public land which needs to be accessed by all residents in the area and their rights must be protected,” Mahamba said.

Earlier in the week, however, Nkuna said he was willing to cooperate with the TMPD.

ALSO READ: Curbside vegetable garden not going anywhere – owner

“I am a law-abiding citizen, so if the law strictly says I cannot plant cabbage and onions here, I will abide by it even if it’s ridiculous, but I will not remove this food based on logic and common sense – that’s not how things work,” he said.

Nkuna had also said his curbside garden was going nowhere until the TMPD could prove which by-law it was he broke.

“I made it clear that the garden is not going anywhere until I am legally served and until someone shows me which by-law I am contravening,” he said.

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